You know the sexist stereotype. A supposedly shy, near-sighted librarian, who when given the chance, lets down the hair, doffs the glasses, and becomes the out-of-character “naughty” librarian.
So by adding more performance, more athletic driving dynamics and less-boxy styling to its “Naughtiest Volvo Ever” new-for-2011 S60, Volvo wants to throw off its stereotypically staid image and help accelerate the brand’s struggling sales.
In a move that may make regular librarians and Volvo owners blush, the Swedish automaker is pitching its new S60 as a “sports sedan.” With phrases from the car’s brochure like, “the driver commands the S60’s 300 horsepower like a firing mechanism” or “it’s a salvo fired from zero to 100 kilometres per hour in 5.8 seconds” in a “trajectory aimed straight at the heart of driving enthusiasts,” you would almost think the copy was written by a member of the National Rifle Association of America, not a bunch of safety-conscious Swedes.
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